Ichigo's Secret
by Asakura-Assassin
Summary: Ai Shirodaira thought it would be just a normal week at Karakura High School. Little did she know, that someone who she thought she knew so well held a huge secret that would change her life.
1. Prologue

Prologue 

"Huh? Ichigo?" I frowned at Ichigo's arm over my shoulders.

"Yea babe what's up?" Ichigo said with a grin.

Ichigo was acting so strange these days. He was usually a very reserved person. This was so out of character.

"What are you doing?"

"Huh? What do you mean? You think I could walk past a beauty like you?"

I blushed but pushed his arm off my shoulder and turned to face him.

"You're acting really weird these days. Have you been drinking? Oh LORD! Are you DRUNK?!"

"What! No way!"

"Drugs?" I narrowed my eyes.

"Are you crazy?! I'd never go near them!"

"Well it must be SOMETHING!" I pointed at him, "You're NOT Kurosaki Ichigo!"

He sweatdropped, "Uh…"

Just then his sister, Karin came by and dragged Ichigo away, "Ichigo! Come here now!"

"I'm on to you 'Kurosaki Ichigo' imposter!" I shouted after him.

"Um…" my other friend, Orihime, started, "How are you so sure that's not Ichigo-kun?"

"He's just acting weird."

"Hmm…well I wonder what his sister wants with him….?"

_Oh no,_ Orihime thought, _He's done it this time…_

Orihime sighed and we carried on our way to school.

Karin sat 'Ichigo' down roughly by a rock near to the entrance of the Karakura National Park.

"Listen up! While you're in Ichigo's body you can't be so inconspicuous!!" she shouted.

However, his mind was elsewhere.

"KON!!"

"Wha-?!" he jumped, "Oh yeah…ah but I just can't help it!" He started drooling, "All these gorgeous girls surround Ichigo I can't believe how lucky he is!"

Karin swiftly kicked him in the face, "That is NOT what you are here for!!"

"OW!!! Oh- Okay okay!! Arghh!!" 'Ichigo' clutched his face in pain.

Karin knelt down in front of 'Ichigo', her face serious, "And I think you should stay away from Ai. She's Ichigo's best friend and knows him the best. She's on to you already and remember Ichigo said we shouldn't get her involved."

'Ichigo' nodded, "Yeah. Got it."


	2. Ichigo's Secret

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Bleach or any characters, though I wish I did... Enjoy Chapter 1!

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**Chapter 1 – Ichigo's secret**

At school, Ichigo wasn't there. Either there was some serious trouble, or he was bunking off, which he only started doing recently.

I sighed.

_Man Ichigo…is there something you're not telling me?_

After school I saw him at the local ramen take-away.

"Ichigo."

He turned around and jumped when he saw me.

"Ah…Ai-chan! Where'd you come from?" He looked nervous.

"I need to talk to you."

"Um…would love to but…I need to get this back to my sis you know how she is if her ramen gets cold. See you later!" And with that he quickly walked out. In fact he almost ran.

I narrowed my eyes. He was definitely hiding something and now was trying to avoid me.

Ichigo… 

"Orihime-chan," I called, walking up to her, "What do you think is up with Ichigo?"

"I think Ichigo is fine. You think something is wrong?" she asked.

I had phoned Orihime to talk to her about Ichigo's strange behavior. But it seemed she was blind… like everyone else.

"Ok. _Arigatou_ Orihime." I sighed.

"Oh-Ohh…okay. You ok, Ai-chan?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. See you."

I hung up.

The next day at school I saw Ishida, another close friend of mine and Ichigo's.

"Ishida-kun," I stopped him on his way to class, "You notice anything weird about Ichigo?"

He pushed his spectacles further up on his nose, "Yes. He's been acting weird lately right?"

"Yes!" My eyes lit up. Finally! Someone who realized what was happening! "What do you think it is?"

"Well I'm not sure. He doesn't seem like himself lately. I'd say there may be personal problems."

"You think so?"

I thought. "No. I think it's something deeper than that. You know how close Ichigo and I are. If it was something like that he would have told me."

"That may be true. But people change. I think you should give him some space and let him work out whatever it is on his own."

I sighed, "Maybe you're right. Thanks Ishida-kun."

"No problem. Now lets go before we're late to class."

But I still wasn't satisfied. If it was 'personal' problems, what it could it possibly have been that Ichigo wouldn't tell me? Then I had a thought.

_Could it be…? Could that possibly be the reason why Ichigo was so distant? Did Ichigo have…a girlfriend???_

I decided the only way I would find out was if I followed him. But the hardest part was actually finding him in the first place. I looked at all of our usual hang-outs; the rocks by the lake, the ramen shop, even the _Kirigakure Bridge_ over the river. However, I found him in the only place I didn't look. The most obvious place I didn't even think of. His house.

He left his house that evening at around 6:00p.m. I followed him to a secluded spot inside the Karakura National Park. There I saw him with Orihime.

_Could it be that his girlfriend was-? Nah… No way!_

In a few moments Ishida and Chad (another friend) turned up.

_What was this? Why were they all meeting here? And without me?_

This was turning more suspicious by the minute. I was waiting for about 10 minutes with them talking inaudibly and I was about to come out and ask for an explanation when Ichigo pulled out a stuffed, bear-shaped toy from his rucksack.

_A bear? What would Ichigo be keeping a cuddly toy in his bag for_?

Suddenly, there was a gust of wind that blinded my eyes and blew around the leaves on the floor and dust from the ground. A few seconds later it dissipated. But things seemed unchanged. There was Orihime, Chad, Ishida and Ichigo…and the stuffed animal. It was on the floor, on its feet. At first I thought it had just strangely balanced. But then it started moving! A small squeak of surprise escaped my lips and I quickly retreated back to my place behind a rock.

"What was that?" I heard Ishida ask.

"A squirrel probably. Who cares." That was Ichigo's voice.

"Hey! You just gonna leave me down here? Hell-?!" That was a voice I didn't recognize.

I gasped. _Was that the stuffed animal? Talking?!_

Its voice was now muffled. It seemed to be crying out for something.

"Hey Ichigo don't step on Kon-kun like that! That's mean!" Orihime pleaded.

Ichigo sighed and then came the voice again, "What the hell Ichigo?! You tryin' to kill me?!"

"Ah shut it!"

I heard some muffling and then heard the zip of Ichigo's rucksack close. "He's damn annoying. I heard he's been causing a lot of trouble too."

"Yeah. I don't think Ai had caught on though. I doubt she has any idea what's going on." That was Ishida.

"That's good." Ichigo replied.

I desperately wanted to take another peek but was scared that they would see me. Now that I had made a sound they would be on the alert. Maybe not Ichigo but I know Ishida would.

I heard them walking past the rock I was hiding behind and out towards the exit of the park.

"So what's been going on while I was gone?" Ichigo asked.

"Well…" Orihime started but her voice trailed away.

Gone? He was _gone_? I KNEW it wasn't Ichigo! But what happened?! I knew I had just stumbled onto something far deeper and complex than I had ever imagined… And it was something Ishida and Orihime were in on. Now I knew what Ishida had said earlier was just a cover up. He was trying to prevent me finding out by agreeing with me about Ichigo. It was smart I'll admit. But now a new feeling was taking over me. Actually, a lot of different feelings. Betrayal, loneliness, frustration, confusion…and caused by my own friends. I needed to get to the bottom of this. Now that Ichigo was 'back', I would get the chance to speak to him personally. And by the end of tomorrow, I resolved, I would find out exactly what was going on.

Maybe I shouldn't have tried to find out. I had wondered that before. What would have happened if I didn't find out? Little did I know at the time that what I would discover would pull me into a situation far deeper, far greater and far more dangerous than I had ever imagined. And the scariest part was that it started with my so-called friends knew about it all along…

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**_A/N- Thanks for reading! Don't forget to review...though no flames please.._**


	3. Ichigo's SecretRevealed?

**Chapter 2 – Ichigo's secret. Revealed?**

The next day, I saw Ichigo on the way to school.

"Hey Ichigo!" I called.

"Yo!" He rose a hand as he turned around and saw me.

"What's up?"

"Nothing. Another boring day at school _ne_?"

I laughed. "And I bet you don't remember asking Orihime out."

I carried on walking but after a few seconds I realized he stopped. I turned to see his eyes were wide and his mouth open.

"I did WHAT?!"

"Hahahah I'm kidding! You just didn't seem to be yourself lately and I was just making sure you're yourself today!" I gave him a thumbs-up.

His eyebrows came together, "Ai-chan…don't joke like that. I nearly had a heart attack!"

"Aww come on it was just a joke!"

"Yeah. Ha-ha. I'll get you back Ai-chan don't worry."

Yup. This was Ichigo alright. So, who was in his body yesterday?

School went by incident-free and boring as usual. After school, Ichigo, Chad, Orihime, Ishida and I hung out at the lake for a little while.

Orihime brought cakes too!

"Wow Orihime these cakes are good!" I gushed. It was true! They were delicious! The icing and the soft, spongy strawberry jam-filled cake seemed to melt in my mouth!

"Uh…Orihime. You didn't have to bring cakes you know. This isn't a picnic." Ichigo said.

"Oh I know. But I thought you guys might get hungry! You…don't want it?" Orihime replied.

Ichigo's face changed, "Oh no! Thanks for bringing them you saved our lives we were starving right Ishida?"

"Uh-huh," Ishida muffled with a nod. Both Ichigo and Ishida's mouths were now filled with cake.

"You don't want any Chad-kun?"

"No. It's okay. I'm on a diet." Chad replied. Chad was a pretty big guy. Strong too. But had a tame spirit and wouldn't hurt a fly. It was amusing to know he was on a diet.

"Oh. Okay."

Pretty soon the cakes were done. Now, my mind wasn't on cake. It was on Ichigo. I wanted to leave soon and talk to Ichigo. Alone. But knowing Ichigo, he would leave only when he wanted to. So I had to wait till he said he was leaving.

In a little while, Chad and Orihime left and went home. It was getting dark. The sun was just above the surface of the lake now. As darkness descended even further Ishida too left. Then it was just me and Ichigo. We lay with our backs on the grass, our arms folded behind our heads, watching the clouds in the purple sky. This was my chance.

"Ichigo."

"Huh?"

"How come you haven't been at school?"

"Uh…well Yuri was sick…" He was lying. It was so obvious! That was pathetic!

"Why couldn't Karin-chan look after her?"

"Because…she had… exams at school..."

I frowned, not believing a word, "Hm. You know…you can tell me anything Ichigo." I turned my head to him, "You know that right?"

He glanced at me, "Yeah. I know."

But I didn't feel he was about to tell me anything. It seemed to me that I would have to find out more information about what was going on for myself, and then confront him with it. This conversation was going nowhere. I sat up.

"Well I'm heading back now."

I sat up and brushed myself off.

"Ai-chan."

I looked to him. Was he finally going to tell me? It looked as if he was about to say something important. His face looked serious. But then his expression changed and he said, "I'll walk you home."

The next day I saw Ichigo on his way to school again as I walked up the road. I was about to call out to him when I noticed he suddenly saw something and ran off around a corner. Thinking it was something important I chased after him. I turned the corner and saw him still running, further up the street.

_He's fast_, I thought, but still kept on after him. But why was he running? Who was he chasing?

I saw him stop in front of a shop, looking up at something on the roof, and then went around the side of the building. I assumed he was looking for the fire escape to get onto the roof. I was becoming more confused by the minute. What on earth did he want on the roof?? And so suddenly?

Nevertheless, I kept following him, eager to see what he was chasing and offer help if possible. I thought of calling after him but reasoned that it would only slow him down in reaching what he was in such a hurry to get. On the roof, he stood looking at, what seemed like thin air. I stayed on the fire escape, only peeking at what was happening on the roof. Then, something happened that I can only describe as eerie. Suddenly, what Ichigo seemed to be looking at didn't look like thin air anymore. At first the air seemed to bend. As if there was something there…but it wasn't from this world. Then gradually I started to see an outline of something horrific. It seemed to have a white face…no, more like a mask. Made of something like bone. Like a skull mask. I couldn't see more than that. "You had to come after me didn't you, Shinigami. Before I've even started my meal!" It said hoarsely.

Then, something even weirder happened. Ichigo suddenly collapsed, but next to him was another Ichigo! Well it seemed like it. But it was still hazy. I could barely make either of them out. However, this Ichigo was dressed in black and had a sword, like a samurai! I gasped. Then suddenly the monster's eyes locked onto me. I saw the rest of it clearly now. Its body was completely black and it stood on all fours. It looked like a cross between a bear and a giant maybe, with a giant black hole in the center of its chest. It was just a monster! Its eyes were piercing and yellow. I was frozen to the spot as I watched this fearsome creature.

It slowly turned its body towards me and then headed towards me so fast and with such ferocity that before I could even think to climb down, my hands had slipped from the handles of the fire escape. The last thing I saw before I fell was seeing Ichigo spin around, see me and shout something. I then felt myself falling through the air, and saw the monster jump off the roof after me, followed by Ichigo.

When I opened my eyes I was in Ichigo's arms and the monster was nowhere to be found. Ichigo was in his normal school uniform again.

"Ichigo?"

"I'm here."

We were on a bench next the fire escape, by the side of that shop. I sat up.

"What happened?" I asked.

"What do you remember?"

"I remember falling." I looked up to the top of the fire escape, "From up there."

"Yeah. I caught you, but then you passed out for about 5 minutes. You remember anything else?"

I remembered everything. Especially the monster's piercing eyes as it locked onto me…

"No." I said.

"Ok. You climbed up there, and you slipped. But it's good that you're not hurt." His face looked concerned. Nevertheless he continued, "Well we're not too late for school yet. We can still make it if we leave now."

I nodded, "Right."

I started wondering if I had dreamt the whole thing. I mean…monsters?! Was I going crazy? Yet, somewhere in my mind I doubted it. It was too real.

Was this what Ichigo was hiding from me? That he had some other life fighting otherworldly creatures from who-knows-where? And the monster called Ichigo a Shinigami. Shinigami as in Death God? Weren't they a myth?

One thing was for sure. It was clear that in that instant when its eyes locked onto mine, my whole perspective changed. I was suddenly able to peer into a whole new world. But I still had more to find out. What were those creatures? And furthermore, who or _what_ exactly was Ichigo?

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_**A/N -Well this is the end of chapter 2. Ready for chapter 3? If you are let me know in a review!!!**_


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